Mostly perennial climbing herbs to large lianas, rarely (not in Africa) shrubs or trees, glabrous or hairy, provided with tendrils

Leaves

Leaves mostly alternate, unlobed to deeply lobed, palminerved or pinninerved, petiolate; margin mostly dentate, often with small gland-teeth; petiole with or without glands; blade-glands present or not

Stipules

Stipules minute to large

Inflorescences

Inflorescences sessile or peduncled, 1–many-flowered, with or without a simple tendril, or rarely flowers collected into pseudoracemes; bracts and bracteoles small to large, forming a conspicuous involucre or not

Corona extrastaminal, variously shaped, simple or mostly composed of a usually complicated outer corona consisting of threads, and flat or plicate inner coronas, sometimes with the addition of a nectary ring or annulus

Tendrils usually solitary in the axils of the leaves, sometimes ending the peduncles, rarely absent.

Flowers

Flowers rather large and handsome, axillary, solitary or in racemes, hermaphrodite, rarely unisexual; peduncles articulate, often 3-bracteate.

Calyx

Calyx-tube patelliform, campanulate or urceolate to tubular.
Sepals 4–5, linear-oblong or linear, often coloured inside, sometimes with horns on the back below the apex.

Corolla

Petals 4–5 or absent, membranous, ± equal to the sepals but more vividly coloured.

Nectaries

Nectar-ring (inframedian corona) an annular ridge within or below the operculum, sometimes wanting.

Corona

Limen (basal corona) close to the base of the gynophore, annular or cupuliform, sometimes wanting.
Operculum (middle or membranous corona) membranous, flat or plicate, entire, lacerate or filamentose, rarely wanting.
Corona (faucial and supramedian corona) of 1 to several series of distinct or ± united filaments, rarely tubular.

Stamens

Stamens 4–5, with the filaments adnate to the gynophore, free at the apex; anthers linear, ovate or oblong, 2-celled, dorsifixed.

Flora of Tropical East Africa
Flora of Tropical East Africa http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

Herbarium Catalogue Specimens
'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.

Interactive Key to Seed Plants of Malesia and Indo-China
The Malesian Key Group (2010) Interactive Key to Seed Plants of Malesia and Indo-China (Version 2.0, 28 Jul 2010) The Nationaal Herbarium Nederland Leiden and The Royal Botanic Gardens Kew